


More Than a Feeling

by NarryEm



Series: One Direction Erotica/Fluff-fest/Wangst as written by EmilyY [45]
Category: One Direction (Band), Radio 1 RPF
Genre: Cat/Human Hybrids, Fluff, Hybrid Louis, Kitten Louis, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-01
Updated: 2014-04-01
Packaged: 2018-01-17 11:35:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1386184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NarryEm/pseuds/NarryEm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nick finds a small boy with damp hair and clothes (minus shoes, weird) crouched by a Dumpster.  Being the good samaritan that he is, he takes the boy home because well, his blue eyes are sad like the stormy ocean and he wants to make it all better.</p><p>(set in a world where hybrids are common)</p>
            </blockquote>





	More Than a Feeling

**Author's Note:**

> title from "Better Than Words"

It's another early day for Nick, as he curses his alarm to the high heaven and back at four in the bloody morning. Being the voice of British morning is great and he loves his colleagues (and the big fat paycheck that comes with it) but waking up is something he'll never grow to tolerate. It's why he always goes to bed at like nine at night, and can't go out on Sunday nights like some people do.

He stumbles into his shower with half-lidded vision and somehow manages to clean himself up without nearly killing himself. He chooses to forego shaving in favour of spending more time on sculpting his hair into a immaculate quiff, his signature. The drive to the studio is abhorrent and his coffee and bagel takes forever. Matt is smirking at his annoyed expression as Nick slides into his seat.

The hours go by quick and he finds himself at a lunch with Pixie and Aimee. And of course, that turns into hours upon hours of meaningless gossiping. Oh, this designer has got his autumn/winter collection out, oh look some idiot in America messed up again. As if Nick gives a shit about idiots who are responsible for running America.

It's mid-afternoon by the time Nick goes back to his flat. He parks his car in the usual spot and walks out of the car park. His flat building is sort of old fashioned and the car park is located separate from the building, and Nick hates the extra walk that he forces him into, especially on a rainy day like today.

He is rounding corner, the one that leads to a dumpster, when he hears a distressed little sound. Nick turns into the small alleyway, curiosity taking the better of him.

It's dark even though it can't be later than half-three. But he sees the outline of a small human body. He crouches down, face level with the other's person's. The small figure is crouched by the dumpster, body pressed tightly into the small alcove as though he is trying to make himself as invisible as possible. His light bronze hair is damp as are his clothes. Looking down, he sees that the boy's feet are bare.

"C'mon, love," he says softly. "Can't be healthy to be out in the rain. We'll go to my place and warm you up, and definitely give you new clothes to wear.

The boy looks up, blue eyes filled with sadness and fear. In that moment, Nick wants to cuddle him and croon into his ears until all those emotions are gone. He nods slowly, and tries to get up. Nick helps him up and catches him as his legs buckle a bit. In the end, he has to half-carry the small boy with him to his flat.

The mystery boy surveys his flat wearily, arms folded over his chest and shivering. Nick wants to know how a lovely boy like him ended up that way but he can save the questions for later. The top priority is to prevent him from getting hypothermia. He guides the other boy to his bathroom and draws a hot bath. He puts in the bubble bath that Pix had got him as a joke for the good measure.

"Ehm, you're going to have to take your clothes off for this," he instructs awkwardly. He averts his eyes as the boy starts to take off his clothes, seemingly not bothered by the aspect of being naked in front of another human being.

Except. well, he's not entirely human.

There is something long and furry swinging behind the boy and triangle of velvety fur poking out from the top of his hair. Nick nearly swears. And to confirm all of his suspicions, there is a silver tag hanging around his neck. The kitten hybrid slips into the bath, submerging himself all the way for a moment before his head resurfaces. Nick touches the back of his neck gently, and asks, "May I?"

The kitten boy nods and Nick unclasps the tag. The front reads, ' _Louis'_ whilst the back reads, ' _6743-24121991_ '. He knows from the tidbits that saw on internet that the first four digits encodes for Louis' place of birth whilst the last stand for his date of birth, that much he can remember from his school days. So, physically, Louis is twenty three this year, but he also knows that hybrid's mentality ages slower than that of a human. Hybrids have the beauty and slight independence of a human whilst they maintain the simplicity and animal like personality.  Living with a hybrid is supposedly like adopting a small child.

Oh fuck.

It's not like he can put Louis back there, out in the rain. Nick is always smitten with the small kitten as it is and he hurts him to know who has done this to Louis. Now that the bubbles are nearly gone, he can see scratch marks and bruises that were definitely human-made. Louis doesn't seem to mind his own wounds, going about his feline business by licking the back of his hand and rubbing it over his cat ears and then down this hair. It should be weird because Louis still looks mostly human but there's also a part of Nick who wants to croon at Louis' cuteness.

The bath lasts nearly an hour and Nick has to supervise the entire time so that Louis doesn't drown or anything.  He knows that Louis isn't completely helpless, but if he remembers correctly, the law regarding hybrids states that the caretaker of a hybrid assumes for any incident that the hybrid is involved in.  That lovely law plus his growing attachment to Louis won't let him go off his alert and attentive mode.  It doesn't help that Louis looks so sated and warm, a pink flush mottling his face and chest as Nick wraps him up in a fluffy towel. All of his clothes are too big on Louis, but he manages to find a jumper that is too tight on him and a pair of joggers whose legs he has to roll up about a million times.

He puts the kettle on and turns on the telly, settling on _The Great Bake-Off_. Louis' ears twitch with interest, as does his fluffed-up tail. It's striped with dark brown, just like his ears are peppered with darker flecks of brown.

Nick doesn't even realise how much time has gone as he is mesmerised by the soft mewls and amusement that comes from Louis, watching his ears flicker and the show too, reminding himself that he really needs to go grocery shopping. Ordering pizza and other types of takeaway can't be all that healthy for him anyway. The kettle goes off with a loud whistling noise and he is about go shut it off when Louis makes a loud wailing sound and jumps off the back of the sofa, squeezing himself into the small space between the furniture and the wall.

"What's wrong love?" Nick asks, approaching the kitten boy. Louis hisses, lips drawn back and ears lying flat on his head as his pupils become slits and Nick can see the fangs inside of Louis' mouth. Whoa. Okay, so maybe that's a trigger for Louis, for whatever past trauma he has endured. Nick hurries over to to turn the thing off and pours the boiling water out into the mugs with tea bags already in them.

"Drink this slowly," Nick offers, setting one of the mugs down on the coffee table. Minutes pass before Louis lowers his guard and sniffs at the mug, tongue darting out to taste the steaming liquid. A look of wonder and joy flits across his small angular face as he picks it up gingerly, tongue lapping up the tea. It's bloody cute and Nick thinks that he might die from a heart attack from this. And if he does, he can die young and happily, really.

Louis looks sleepy by the time he finishes his cuppa. Nick doesn't blame him; a nice long bath and hot tea is a good remedy for fatigue and if Louis' run away from a hybrid shelter or summat, he must be dead knackered.

"You can sleep in my bed, love," Nick says quietly and Louis smiles at him gratefully. It's the first time he's seen the hybrid smile and fuck, it makes his heart flutter like something out of a romance novel and his heart pretty much melts. Louis is all sunshine and roses when he smiles like that, even though his little kitten teeth are there.

The bed is unmade with several outfit choice thrown atop it. Nick makes a quick work of throwing them on to the floor and folds the covers back, inviting Louis. Louis looks a bit intimidated, and for a second a horrible image of Louis sleeping in a cage crosses Nick's mind. Nonetheless, he pushes at Louis' shoulders gently to get him to lie down and then pull the covers up, tucking him in afterwards. "Night, Louis," he murmurs, kissing the kitten's forehead. He makes a happy chirruping sound, eyes fluttering closed. Nick watches as Louis falls into deep slumber, his ears moving slightly and purring noises emitting from him.

As silently as he can muster, Nick tiptoes out of the room. He'll have to buy some ingredients for food, especially now that he is caring for a kitten hybrid.

 

 

-

 

 

Days pass by and Louis still hasn't uttered a word of human syllable. Nick finally decides to take Louis out shopping because as maddeningly adorable as Louis looks in his oversized-on-Louis clothes, Nick is bad at doing his laundry regularly and they are running out of clean underwear to wear. And plus, Louis eats his fair share of food so they are out of food already. Also, Nick it's getting warmer with the approaching spring-and-hopefully-summer so he needs to buy shorts and snuff.

"C'mon kitten," Nick tries, because Louis is still starkers and he seems to have an aversion to proper clothes made of silk and soft cotton. He's looked some stuff up and the worldwide web's best explanation is that hybrids have extremely heightened senses so they may react to normal _human_ things differently. The only items of clothing that Louis doesn't mind all that much is his ratty shirt and sweatpants he was found in. (He still look cute in those, Nick might add)

Louis hisses, not much at the nickname but more so at the notion that he'll have to get dressed. Nick has tried everything short of drugging the boy with catnip. Catnip is supposed to affect hybrids like they do cats, make them all compliant and lax and stuff. Right now, though, Nick is tempted to bring out the small chew toy.

Oh what the hell, his patience has been sorely tried and he is not above bribery in the form of soft drugs.

"Hey, Louis," he croons, and Louis' ears perk up. It's the same kind of tone that Nick uses when he feeds him junk food or hands him a cuppa. "Do you want this toy?" he takes the small squeaky toy from his zippered pocket and holds it out in front of him. Louis leans forward, head cocked curiously. He sniffs at it, tail swinging behind him. One sniff and the effect is immediate. Louis' eyes go wide and super dilated, his blue irises barely visible around the huge black pupils. He alternates between purring and _mrrow_ -ing, tail practically vibrating. Taking the chance, Nick dresses him quick and grabs his hand.

They make it to the car park with not too much trouble. Louis can't walk properly and he wants to smell _everything_ , from Nick's hair to the trees on the sides of the pavement. Nick has to hold him firmly to his side with one arm and all but shove him inside his car.

Being a radio DJ has a few perks and a luxury car is one of them. He manages to keep Louis entertained with some shitty reality telly show on the way to the mall. Louis is humming a song that only exists inside his head and Nick can't help but smile at the petite lad fondly.

The mall is deserted at this hour, and for that Nick is glad. He's not super famous but he does still get recognised when he goes out for stuff. He ducks into Topshop because it's the first store he sees. He picks out some clothes that he eyeballs and holds them up against Louis for the sizing. Louis seems partial to soft colours and trackies so Nick buys a lot of those. He also likes the beanies and well, Louis looks damn cute in a grey beanie. The otal, combined with his own summer clothes, is staggering but Nick simply hands over his credit card.

It's well past noon by the time they leave Jack Wills so Nick takes Louis to the food court. He orders some random stuff from the Chinese place and to his relief, Louis digs in. By the glares that he receives from Louis, Nick guesses that the catnip has worn off and that Louis is pissed at him. He tries to bribe him with a sugary drink, some pop that he doesn't care for, and it works for a short while. They bin the tray and stuff and grab the bags, Louis taking the initiative to hold Nick's hand. He'll never admit to it, but the gesture makes his heart flutter.

Nick remembers to go to Tesco for some food. Nick can cook, contrary to popular belief, but he is far too lazy to try most of the times. But with the added mouth to feed and the fact that he is looking into his thirties, he figures that it can't hurt to start living healthier. Not too much.

After the day's excursion, Louis looks proper tired. He sleeps on the ride back home and when Nick wakes him at the car park, he makes a soft mewing sound that goes straight to Nick's heart. He manages to get the shopping bags plus a sleepy kitten boy to his flat with no casualty. Louis collapses onto the sofa and Nick has to snap himself out of a cooing stupor to bring over a spare blanket and cover Louis with it. He then puts away the food in the fridge, trying to remember what goes where. Ten minutes in, he gives up and just shoves them wherever they fit. Organising his closet is easier, and he separates a rack for Louis' clothes. He also empties out a couple drawers for Louis' t-shirts and underwear, being a proper grown-up about it.

Pix calls him close to dinner time and he tells her all about it. (He does _not_ gush like some teenage girl at all) Pixie says that she wants to meet Louis along with Alexa and Aimee, and Nick has to delay it because he isn't sure how Louis will react to a larger group of people. Earlier when they were at Tesco, Louis seemed subdued and a little scared. He had all but plastered his body to Nick's, much to the passersby's amusement. People seem to have an innate soft heart for the hybrids and it's not uncommon to see one walking down the street.

By the time smell of quesadillas and tomato rice is filling up Nick's flat, he hears a loud distressed wail coming from the direction of the living room. Louis is awake and he hissing and wailing at the same time at something. Upon arriving at the scene, Nick has to suppress a laugh lest he offend the kitten boy. There is a tiny spider the size of a penny crawling up the coffee table and Louis is absolutely terrified. Nick cups his hands around the spider and walks over to the open window at the kitchen. From the soft creaking of the hardwood floor boards, he knows that Louis is following him. He sets the little critter free and turns around to see Louis;s thin pink lips still curled up in fear and disgust.

"There, crisis averted," Nick jokes. Louis' steady glare tells him that the hybrid isn't amused. "On the plus side, dinner is ready!" Nick announces. Louis nose twitches and he smiles in approval, like Nick has done a good job. Nick serves him the quesadilla and rice and Louis purrs happily as he gobbles it down in record time. Nick has also given him a cup of warm milk with some honey in it, and Louis laps at it, purring constantly.

"I need to teach you how to speak," Nick muses as he cleans up the dishes. "Like, purrs and mewls can only go so far and I don't think even Google can translate kitty language into human speech."

Louis narrows his eyes and Nick has to laugh because Louis looks so adorable when he does that. "C'n talk," he mumbles softly.

Nick's heart skips a beat because damn, Louis has this soft tenor voice that could melt the coldest of the hearts. "Then why haven't you?"

"N' allowed," Louis answers, ears drooping sadly. "Bad kitty."

"But talking is good, love. I wanna know what you think and if I'm doing this adopting thing right," Nick insists.

"Louis likes Nick," Louis says after a few moments. "Nick nice to Lou."

Nick smiles. "Aww, kitten. I like you too. And of course I'm nice to you, why would anyone be mean to a cute little thing like you?"

"Ab-abomin-shu-tion?" Louis says, breaking the word into several shorter ones.

"Abomination? No, it's not. All the research subject were volunteers and they knew that the scientists were trying to creating a new life form."

"Hybrids b-bad," Louis says with so much conviction that is hurts Nick to hear it.

"You are beautiful, and no one can tell you otherwise, nor are you allowed to believe what others tell you, yeah?"

Louis nods, tears glistening in his beautiful blue eyes. Out of instinct or something close to it, Nick closes the distance between them presses his lips to Louis' lightly. It's not a kiss, just a mere brush of two pairs of lips against one another and Nick is only trying to soothe the younger and vulnerable boy. It barely lasts a second, but by the time Nick pulls back, there is a bright red blush blossoming on Louis' face.

"Nick kiss Lou?" he asks, head tilted to the side in confusion. "But Nick not love Louis?"

"Eh," Nick has dug himself a grave, didn't he? "People kiss each other for comfort too, love."

Louis smiles, the expression lighting up his face like the morning light. "Like kiss. Feel good."

Nick smiles back. "We can do it again only if you wanna, love."

There's that smile again, widening as Louis stands on his tiptoes to press his lips to Nick's. This time, Nick isn't afraid to nudge Louis' lips apart a bit, showing him what to do. Louis is a quick learner, nibbling on Nick's bottom lip like Nick does and then rasping his rough tongue over the seam of Nick's lips. There is a distinct kitten like way to the way Louis kisses, playful and lazy. Nick pries Louis' lips open gently and slips his tongue is slowly as not to startle Louis. He runs the tip of his tongue over the backs of Louis' teeth and then the roof of his mouth, delighting in the loud purring noise that he elicits. He tangles his hands into Louis' soft hair, scratching the cat ears. Louis is practically vibrating with the force of his purrs, all compliant and malleable in Nick's arms.

Eventually Nick pulls back, albeit hesitantly. He can't wipe the grin off his face and neither can Louis. His tail is swinging wildly from the excitement and his ears have disappeared into his hair, but in a good way. Louis keeps purring, his face nuzzling into the crook of Nick's neck.

Oh to hell with the dishes. He's got a purring boy in his embrace and that always takes the top priority.


End file.
